Not sure if that WhatsApp message or e-mail on the coronavirus is fake news? Ask The Straits Times, and we will help you pin it down.

ST is pitching in to help its readers distinguish between real and fake news amid a spate of online posts and social media messages alleging unverified information.

For example, last Friday, a circulating WhatsApp message told recipients to avoid going to Tan Tock Seng Hospital and KK Women's and Children's Hospital as patients from China were being sent there. The Ministry of Health clarified on Facebook that people need not do this because all public hospitals "have strict protocols to handle and manage suspect cases".

Readers can write to the askST platform about reports, videos or photos they find dubious. Reporters will look into these claims. Readers can also flag content that they have found to be false; we may consider publishing our findings.

Readers can send an e-mail with their questions and a link to the suspect article to askst@sph.com.sg. Reports published can be found on the ST website under a special "fake news debunked" section.

Follow ST's coverage of the outbreak here.

Read more about the key developments in this interactive graphic.

For alerts on the coronavirus outbreak, follow us on Telegram: https://t.me/TheStraitsTimes